Is the Plan Working?

Now that all the info is out there, I can get back to updates. Andrew's been doing better the last couple of days. Even though he's still completely sedated, they've been able to wean a bit on the ventilator....he's down from 35 to 23 breaths per minute. That means he's aerating better with a smaller number of breaths. His CO2 levels have also gotten better. They're always going to be higher than they were with an arterial line (55-75 was within parameters), but the most recent draws from his new central line have been in the 60s...two days ago, they were between 80 and 100. His oxygen saturations have been better, his congestion has gone down a bit, and his feeds have continued at 17cc per hour. We don't know if the improvements are due to movement of his heart and/or partial deflation of his left lung, but we're definitely happy to see any positive changes.

It's hard to see him completely asleep and unresponsive like this, especially when he was so vibrant just a week and a half ago. Logically, we recognize that keeping him calm is for the best, allowing him to rest and heal without making himself upset. But it's hard to hear nurses that haven't had him before talk about how much better he's doing, when this entire week has been a huge step backward from the awake, stable, happy, and (relatively) healthy little boy we had two weeks ago.

We had a nice weekend, including going to a wedding, watching a Chargers game with friends, and sleeping in for the first time in about a month. This week will be pretty busy with work, including multiple trips to Orange County and one to Portland, Oregon. It will be difficult to get to the hospital, but I'm determined to visit every day, even though I'll be busy and he's been less-than-exciting company recently.

More details as things develop over the next few days. I don't anticipate much in the way of pictures, as he's facing away from visitors and a little swollen due to the sedation. Maybe I'll do a best-of picture recap sometime this week.